House Rule: Dead Bodies in a Square - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

House Rule: Dead Bodies in a Square

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
bendbuddy
Apr 05, 2009 12:50:17 Hi All,

We have an ongoing house rule about dead bodies in a square and I'm curious to get the forum's point of view. So here it goes:

When an enemy dies in its square, we placae a corpse marker in place of its miniature. That "death square" is then considered difficult terrain (-2 to movement). We'll get especially jiggy and do a -4 movement for 2 or more bodies.

Is the difficult terrain too over the top? I personally don't think so as it seems like it would be tricky to move through that square with a dead body in the way.

How do y'all play it in your own games?

Thanks in advance for your feedback,

Ben
Chandler, AZ

"Say hey" on Twitter
Check out our blog: Ben's RPG Pile
#2
Nyarlathotep
Apr 05, 2009 13:27:01 I think it takes more than a single minor obstacle to make a square 'difficult terrain', otherwise every log, pillar, or largish rock should also mkae it difficult terrain.
#3
ogrejelly
Apr 05, 2009 15:41:22 I think I've done this in the past with big monsters, constructs, or other "bulky" creatures (or PCs) but not tried it in 4e yet.
I'm currently running a campaign with a city under siege by demons. I might try this when throngs or multiple minions bite the dust. You remember the siege scene in Starship Troopers where the pile of dead aliens begins to pile up at the wall?
#4
diabolical_harmony
Apr 05, 2009 16:07:46 It's interesting this should come up, I was recently running a game and thought what I should do about the corpses littering the battlefield.

Personally I couldn't see a square becoming difficult terrain unless multiple human sized bodies have dropped or been moved to that square, at the very least I would be thinking 3-4 or 1 or 2 larger sized creatures.

However, I could definitley see how fighting in a square with 1 or 2 bodies lying under your feet could become a tricky proposition though.

I have been considering applying a minus to AC or a NAD such as reflex or perhaps even a minus to attack rolls while occupying said square but haven't made up my mind yet if it will work.

I would be interested to know if anyone else has considered this approach and the difficult terrain option before as well and what mechanical penalties or even plusses you may have applied?
#5
salla
Apr 05, 2009 16:44:16 We all just pluck the minis off the board for simplicity's sake, unless it's a really big monster ... though those are the ones that tend to die last, so it usually doesn't matter.
#6
lucifernietzsche
Apr 05, 2009 18:43:55 I like the notion of putting down a small cardboard token in place of dead bodies. One body wouldn't make too much difference, but two medium-size corpses in a single 5-foot area most certainly do count as difficult terrain. Either you have to hop over (expending additional effort, reducing your overall movement distance), or pick your way past carefully (taking up more time and, again, reducing your overall movement distance).

So, the first token would be meaningless...just a placeholder for additional tokens. Whether additional body tokens after the second would impart further penalties to movement is up to the rest of you, I think, but I don't see a particular reason to bother, off the top of my head.
#7
malkav666
Apr 05, 2009 22:19:29 I make my players wear "Hello my name is" stickers with the words:Corpse or Dead Body, or something similar on it when one of their characters bites the big one. Its a long standing tradition that they all love. As far as corpses being difficult terrain? nah not on my watch.

love,

malkav
#8
Hocus-Smokus
Apr 05, 2009 22:35:12 In my home games, I make Large or bigger monsters (never medium or smaller) difficult terrain when they drop decently dead, and I also allow for their bodies to be used as partial cover and concealment (or total, if they are big enough). It's just a fun little thing to throw in.

I hate the feeling that dead bodies suddenly "vanish" from the battlefield after they kick the bucket. Especially with 4E's heavy reliance on maps/minis, when one drops dead, they are usually removed from the map. When combat is finished, it can be difficult to remember exactly where everyone was when they bought the farm.
#9
vaelan
Apr 05, 2009 23:05:52 Maybe if there were two or three bodies there. Just one body could easily be hopped over or simply walked over.

I think dead bodies would create terrain that grants a penalty to defenses, personally. The footwork and scrambling required to dodge 2-4 kobolds thrusting tiny little spears at you would be significantly hindered by a corpse. I'd never implement this, though.
#10
xupopix
Apr 07, 2009 10:46:48 depending on the size of the creature.. there are some "big" medium monsters. so.. I use it like that to.. making it dificult terrain.
#11
mplindustries
Apr 07, 2009 11:30:27
In my home games, I make Large or bigger monsters (never medium or smaller) difficult terrain when they drop decently dead, and I also allow for their bodies to be used as partial cover and concealment (or total, if they are big enough). It's just a fun little thing to throw in.

In the wild west, it was a conventional rule to shoot the man not the horse. Not because you could take the horse later, though that was a bonus, no, it was because a dead horse is cover.
#12
nthdegree256
Apr 07, 2009 12:21:32 I think that "dead bodies as difficult terrain" could be interesting depending on the style of game you want... it'd be great for a zombie horde, for example, because you could pull off tricks like "I'm readying my attack for when the zombie steps through the door, so it'll start to fill up with bodies and slow down the rest of them" and see the aftereffects of all of the throngs of zombie minions that came after you - "don't let them get behind us! we need a clear path to escape!"

A quick rule I've seen used to implement this is to put a diagonal slash in a square when a dead body drops there. If a second body falls in the same square, put a diagonal slash going the other direction; the square is now difficult terrain.
#13
lucifernietzsche
Apr 07, 2009 15:10:36
I think that "dead bodies as difficult terrain" could be interesting depending on the style of game you want... it'd be great for a zombie horde, for example, because you could pull off tricks like "I'm readying my attack for when the zombie steps through the door, so it'll start to fill up with bodies and slow down the rest of them" and see the aftereffects of all of the throngs of zombie minions that came after you - "don't let them get behind us! we need a clear path to escape!"

A quick rule I've seen used to implement this is to put a diagonal slash in a square when a dead body drops there. If a second body falls in the same square, put a diagonal slash going the other direction; the square is now difficult terrain.

That's pretty good, the slashes...better than tokens anyway, if you've got the right mat.
#14
katherose
Apr 07, 2009 22:34:19 We play the same way, actually. Although we call it squishy terrain, and it's only squishy (difficult) terrain until someone moves into it the first time. Then it's effectively "squished."

Our houserule came from the KotS encounter with the kobolds and the cave. Our fighter intimidated most of the kobolds outside the cave to run and hide inside the cave, so the group had to fight almost twice as many kobolds at the same time. With all those dead bodies (overturned tokens) piling up, we had to come up with something. So we came up with squishy terrain.

Squishy Terrain

A dead small or larger creature is effectively squishy terrain until it has been stepped on. While squishy terrain, it acts as difficult terrain and has all the properties of difficult terrain. Once stepped on, the squishy terrain becomes squished terrain and no longer functions as difficult terrain.
#15
undrave
Apr 07, 2009 22:44:18 We used to have paper markers too but nowaday we just make a mark with a dry erase pen when something dies.

We did play for a while with the difficult terrain rule and not being able to shift through a dead body. It offered some interesting situation but at present...no idea how we stand :p
#16
johnthedm7000
Apr 08, 2009 23:41:45 This is something I've been doing for a while, where if 2 or 3 bodies end up in the same square it becomes difficult terrain. If the bodies were particularly big (like ogres) it might become cover. And hell, if a huge dragon or something dies, it's blocking terrain.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 bendbuddy Apr 05, 2009 12:50:17	Hi All, We have an ongoing house rule about dead bodies in a square and I'm curious to get the forum's point of view. So here it goes: When an enemy dies in its square, we placae a corpse marker in place of its miniature. That "death square" is then considered difficult terrain (-2 to movement). We'll get especially jiggy and do a -4 movement for 2 or more bodies. Is the difficult terrain too over the top? I personally don't think so as it seems like it would be tricky to move through that square with a dead body in the way. How do y'all play it in your own games? Thanks in advance for your feedback, Ben Chandler, AZ "Say hey" on Twitter Check out our blog: Ben's RPG Pile
#2 Nyarlathotep Apr 05, 2009 13:27:01	I think it takes more than a single minor obstacle to make a square 'difficult terrain', otherwise every log, pillar, or largish rock should also mkae it difficult terrain.
#3 ogrejelly Apr 05, 2009 15:41:22	I think I've done this in the past with big monsters, constructs, or other "bulky" creatures (or PCs) but not tried it in 4e yet. I'm currently running a campaign with a city under siege by demons. I might try this when throngs or multiple minions bite the dust. You remember the siege scene in Starship Troopers where the pile of dead aliens begins to pile up at the wall?
#4 diabolical_harmony Apr 05, 2009 16:07:46	It's interesting this should come up, I was recently running a game and thought what I should do about the corpses littering the battlefield. Personally I couldn't see a square becoming difficult terrain unless multiple human sized bodies have dropped or been moved to that square, at the very least I would be thinking 3-4 or 1 or 2 larger sized creatures. However, I could definitley see how fighting in a square with 1 or 2 bodies lying under your feet could become a tricky proposition though. I have been considering applying a minus to AC or a NAD such as reflex or perhaps even a minus to attack rolls while occupying said square but haven't made up my mind yet if it will work. I would be interested to know if anyone else has considered this approach and the difficult terrain option before as well and what mechanical penalties or even plusses you may have applied?
#5 salla Apr 05, 2009 16:44:16	We all just pluck the minis off the board for simplicity's sake, unless it's a really big monster ... though those are the ones that tend to die last, so it usually doesn't matter.
#6 lucifernietzsche Apr 05, 2009 18:43:55	I like the notion of putting down a small cardboard token in place of dead bodies. One body wouldn't make too much difference, but two medium-size corpses in a single 5-foot area most certainly do count as difficult terrain. Either you have to hop over (expending additional effort, reducing your overall movement distance), or pick your way past carefully (taking up more time and, again, reducing your overall movement distance). So, the first token would be meaningless...just a placeholder for additional tokens. Whether additional body tokens after the second would impart further penalties to movement is up to the rest of you, I think, but I don't see a particular reason to bother, off the top of my head.
#7 malkav666 Apr 05, 2009 22:19:29	I make my players wear "Hello my name is" stickers with the words:Corpse or Dead Body, or something similar on it when one of their characters bites the big one. Its a long standing tradition that they all love. As far as corpses being difficult terrain? nah not on my watch. love, malkav
#8 Hocus-Smokus Apr 05, 2009 22:35:12	In my home games, I make Large or bigger monsters (never medium or smaller) difficult terrain when they drop decently dead, and I also allow for their bodies to be used as partial cover and concealment (or total, if they are big enough). It's just a fun little thing to throw in. I hate the feeling that dead bodies suddenly "vanish" from the battlefield after they kick the bucket. Especially with 4E's heavy reliance on maps/minis, when one drops dead, they are usually removed from the map. When combat is finished, it can be difficult to remember exactly where everyone was when they bought the farm.
#9 vaelan Apr 05, 2009 23:05:52	Maybe if there were two or three bodies there. Just one body could easily be hopped over or simply walked over. I think dead bodies would create terrain that grants a penalty to defenses, personally. The footwork and scrambling required to dodge 2-4 kobolds thrusting tiny little spears at you would be significantly hindered by a corpse. I'd never implement this, though.
#10 xupopix Apr 07, 2009 10:46:48	depending on the size of the creature.. there are some "big" medium monsters. so.. I use it like that to.. making it dificult terrain.
#11 mplindustries Apr 07, 2009 11:30:27	In my home games, I make Large or bigger monsters (never medium or smaller) difficult terrain when they drop decently dead, and I also allow for their bodies to be used as partial cover and concealment (or total, if they are big enough). It's just a fun little thing to throw in. In the wild west, it was a conventional rule to shoot the man not the horse. Not because you could take the horse later, though that was a bonus, no, it was because a dead horse is cover.
#12 nthdegree256 Apr 07, 2009 12:21:32	I think that "dead bodies as difficult terrain" could be interesting depending on the style of game you want... it'd be great for a zombie horde, for example, because you could pull off tricks like "I'm readying my attack for when the zombie steps through the door, so it'll start to fill up with bodies and slow down the rest of them" and see the aftereffects of all of the throngs of zombie minions that came after you - "don't let them get behind us! we need a clear path to escape!" A quick rule I've seen used to implement this is to put a diagonal slash in a square when a dead body drops there. If a second body falls in the same square, put a diagonal slash going the other direction; the square is now difficult terrain.
#13 lucifernietzsche Apr 07, 2009 15:10:36	I think that "dead bodies as difficult terrain" could be interesting depending on the style of game you want... it'd be great for a zombie horde, for example, because you could pull off tricks like "I'm readying my attack for when the zombie steps through the door, so it'll start to fill up with bodies and slow down the rest of them" and see the aftereffects of all of the throngs of zombie minions that came after you - "don't let them get behind us! we need a clear path to escape!" A quick rule I've seen used to implement this is to put a diagonal slash in a square when a dead body drops there. If a second body falls in the same square, put a diagonal slash going the other direction; the square is now difficult terrain. That's pretty good, the slashes...better than tokens anyway, if you've got the right mat.
#14 katherose Apr 07, 2009 22:34:19	We play the same way, actually. Although we call it squishy terrain, and it's only squishy (difficult) terrain until someone moves into it the first time. Then it's effectively "squished." Our houserule came from the KotS encounter with the kobolds and the cave. Our fighter intimidated most of the kobolds outside the cave to run and hide inside the cave, so the group had to fight almost twice as many kobolds at the same time. With all those dead bodies (overturned tokens) piling up, we had to come up with something. So we came up with squishy terrain. Squishy Terrain A dead small or larger creature is effectively squishy terrain until it has been stepped on. While squishy terrain, it acts as difficult terrain and has all the properties of difficult terrain. Once stepped on, the squishy terrain becomes squished terrain and no longer functions as difficult terrain.
#15 undrave Apr 07, 2009 22:44:18	We used to have paper markers too but nowaday we just make a mark with a dry erase pen when something dies. We did play for a while with the difficult terrain rule and not being able to shift through a dead body. It offered some interesting situation but at present...no idea how we stand :p
#16 johnthedm7000 Apr 08, 2009 23:41:45	This is something I've been doing for a while, where if 2 or 3 bodies end up in the same square it becomes difficult terrain. If the bodies were particularly big (like ogres) it might become cover. And hell, if a huge dragon or something dies, it's blocking terrain.